Flat Bread Pizzas

Super quick and super delicious.  Having your flatbreads all cooked up on the weekend means a quick meal on a week night. It can all be done at once if  you so choose.  Either way, they are delicious with whatever toppings  yo choose.  Here I did a basil pesto with mozzarella and a peach, prosciutto and mozarella.  Sprinkle it with some fresh arugula when it exits the oven.

Super quick and super delicious.  Having your flatbreads all cooked up on the weekend means a quick meal on a week night. It can all be done at once if  you so choose.  Either way, they are delicious with whatever toppings  yo choose.  Here I did a basil pesto with mozzarella and a peach, prosciutto and mozarella.  Sprinkle it with some fresh arugula when it exits the oven.

Flatbread

4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
7 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups milk

In a microwave safe dish or a pot on the stove, heat the butter with the milk.  You wanted it to bubble a little, not boil. Let cool so that you can stick your finger in it comfortably.  Pour into flour and salt.  Mix until it comes together.  Turn out on a floured surface and knead.  Set aside to rest for at least 30 minutes.  Prep you pizza toppings whatever they may be.

Divide dough into approximately 18 balls for smaller type flatbreads, less if you want them larger.  Roll out to circles.  Make sure you cover the dough as you are rolling out your discs.  It will dry quickly.

Place on heated skillet and cook until the dough is not shiny anymore.  Flip and heat a few mroe minutes. Stack on a dish. 

Breakfast Pizza

I liked mine sprinkled with Frank's Red Hot Sauce.

This was a Sunday morning breakfast that really should have been a Sunday brunch.  Packed with protein and deliciousness, it also packs a bacon fat punch.  But hey, I had to give it a try. It was a treat.

My daughter had her friend J over.  Love giving her treats because she is such a full of gratitude kind of girl.  I love that about her.  Everyone loves seeing gratitude in people don't they?  Entitlement is such a turn off.  At least for me.  Seeing J enjoy a meal and smiling about it gives me such joy.  Isn't that what being a cook is all about.  At least for me, when I make a meal for someone and they really enjoy it, it makes me feel good.  I accomplished something.

BREAKFAST PIZZA
If your bacon and dough is already made then this pizza is a snap.  I will write it as if you don't. Pizza dough recipe underneath.  It is a make ahead pizza dough but if you want to make it the same day then you could use this recipe instead.

6-8 eggs
3 tablespoons milk
dash of Tabasco (optional)
1 pound bacon
1 pound mozzarella

Preheat your oven to 450F.  Make sure there is a rack on the bottom of the oven.

While the oven is heating, roll out your dough.  Either put cornmeal on your pan or nonstick cooking spray.

Top with mozzarella.

In a bowl, combine eggs with milk and beat with a fork or whisk.  Warm frying pan and put a little butter or oil in it, coating the bottom.  Pour eggs in.  Keep pulling the cooked egg on bottom to the top.  Don't over cook them, undercook!  The eggs will continue baking in the oven when they are on the pizza.  Season eggs with salt and pepper.  Even better with a dash of Tabasco.

Break up eggs into small pieces, scatter all over pizza.

Top with bacon all around.

Bake on bottom shelf of oven.

OVERNIGHT BASIC PIZZA DOUGH

Original recipe taken from “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” by Peter Reinhart.

Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter).

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups (20 1/4 ounces/607.5 g) Unbleached high-gluten (%14) bread flour
1 3/4 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1/4 cup (2 ounces/60g) olive oil
1 3/4 cups (14 ounces/420g or 420ml) Water, ice cold (40° F/4.5° C)
1 tablespoon sugar
Semolina/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting


Method:
1. Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer).

2. Add the oil, sugar and cold water and mix well (with the help of a large wooden spoon or with the paddle attachment, on low speed) in order to form a sticky ball of dough. On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much, though) and if it is too dry add 1 or 2 teaspoons extra water.

3. Flour a work surface or counter. Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.

4. With the help of a metal or plastic dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas).

5. Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Gently round each piece into a ball.

6. Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into plastic bag or enclose in plastic food wrap.

7. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to thee days.

On the second day:
8. On the day you plan to eat pizza, exactly 2 hours before you make it, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator. Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil. Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and delicately press the dough into disks about 1/2 inch/1.3 cm thick and 5 inches/12.7 cm in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap and then allow to rest for 2 hours.

9. At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven as hot as possible (500° F/260° C).

10. Generously sprinkle the back of a jelly pan with semolina/durum flour or cornmeal. Flour your hands (palms, backs and knuckles). Take 1 piece of dough by lifting it with a pastry scraper. Lay the dough across your fists in a very delicate way and carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, and by giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss.

11. When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter - for a 6 ounces/180g piece of dough), place it on the back of the jelly pan, making sure there is enough semolina/durum flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick to the pan.

12. Lightly top it with sweet or savory toppings of your choice.

13. Slide the garnished pizza onto the stone in the oven or bake directly on the jelly pan. Close the door and bake for about 5-8 minutes.

14. Take the pizza out of the oven and transfer it to a cutting board or your plate. In order to allow the cheese to set a little, wait 3-5 minutes before slicing or serving.

Positively Butternut Squash Pizza

 
At  a local pizzeria I get  what they call a Positano Pizza.  What does Positano mean?  Its a city along the Amalfi Coast.  I am sure that whoever named this pizza had some specific reason why he or she named the Positano.  In my mind, when I ordered the Positano (ah hem a couple of different times, at different visits) , I would think in my head, now, what was that pizza, oh yes, Positano. I know the name because it is "positively" good for you with its butternut squash all over it.  Isn't it funny how I can fool myself into believing a pizza is good for me?  Ha!

It is delicious!  I tried to make it home the way they did before but it just didn't come out to my liking.  This time however, I think I got it right.  Its not exactly what they do but it was delicious to me! I think I nailed it! My pizza picky husband agreed.

Positively Butternut Pizza

1/4 cup Gorgonzola cheese
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup butternut squash that has been cubed and roasted
Aleppo Pepper or Crushed Red Pepper
crushed black pepper
basil leaves
pepperoni

If you want a crispy pizza, there is all kinds of ways to go about it but here I took the easy route.  I used an air bake pan.  It worked perfectly.  I sprayed with pam and spread my dough on it.

Gorgonzola, Pear and Walnut Pizza

Time for the Autumn shift in food.  Apples, pears, butternut squash, pumpkin.  Oh, I love it.  I love everything about Fall.  Putting on a sweatshirt, curling up with a blanket.  Swoon.  It's my favorite time of year. 

Today, I made some little pizza's and had some Raging Bitch Beer.  Believe me, yesterday it was totally apropo. It did not calm me down in the least.  But, hey, me and my hormones is not what this post is about. Its about food.

Yesterday, I had this beer with some roasted cauliflower that had this amazing Maple Dill Dressing.  Sadly, I can not give you this recipe.  It was developed by a chef at a lodge where I go for retreat.  Her and the lodge are seeking a patent at this time.  I have to tell you, this stuff rocks. 

Anyway Raging Bitch beer was everything she promised to be.  She's a very bitter woman.  My taste buds were not happy about it.  I drank half of it and put it away for another day.

So, today when I made my Gorgonzola, Pear, Walnut Pizza, I decided to give her a try again.  With the bold flavors of my pizza, it paired so nicely.  I really enjoyed the Raging Bitch tonight.  And I tell you, it was much calmer around here.

I made two small pizza's. After making my little round, I added two tablespoons of gorgonzola and half of a pear and a tablespoon of chopped walnuts.

Baked at 475F for about ten minutes.

Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper, Kosher salt and arugula.  

A-mazing!

Zucchini Crust Pizza

It's very exciting to watch my daughter, who does not like anything green to go in her mouth, eat a pizza made of zucchini and actually enjoy it! She even said, get this, that the next time it is pizza night she would not mind eating this kind pizza.

This is really good.  I would so have this again.  

Zucchini Crust Pizza


1 medium to large zucchini shredded
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 cup cheese, shredded
1 egg
1 cup panko crumbs
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic powder

Preheat oven to 400F. Place a baking stone on bottom shelf of oven.

Shred zucchini on a box grater. Place in bowl and toss with the salt.

Let the zucchini sit for 15 minutes.  Rinse. Squeeze out the excess water.

In a bowl mix egg, cheese and panko crumbs.  Add in salt and pepper to taste.  Also add in garlic powder.

Smooth out into a round and press flat on parchment paper. Transfer the pizza to the baking stone.

Bake for 20 minutes or more. You want it to be golden around the edges.  If you didn't get much of the excess water taken it out, it will take a lot longer.

Smooth tomato sauce on the crust and then sprinkle with cheese.

Return to oven and bake until the cheese is melted.

Gluten Free Naan Pizza

I make gluten free pizza when the rest of the family is enjoying my homemade pizza.  Normally this would be kind of sad but I have never really been a huge fan of pizza. The first time I made it I used a store bought one, it was okay.  The second time I made it, which I posted here it was good.  The thing I don't like is that instead of it having a certain chew that I miss about real bread, it is more like biting into a savory cake.

Enter this idea.  Its a recipe for gluten free naan.  Since I LOVE naan, I had to try it.  I will say the recipe is definitely a challenge technique wise but worth your patience to get it right.   The pile below is the fruits of my labor.  It needed a ton of potato starch to roll it out.  Yes, the recipe still needs perfection in my opinion but I can live with my results for sure. ( The original recipe says it should come out like mash potatoes consistency but  alas, its a bit like rolling out mashed potatoes.)

I put it in a 450 degree oven with my toppings on and left it in just long enough that the cheese melted.  The onions on top were sheer goodness.

Gluten Free Naan

3/4 cup brown rice flour
3/4 rice flour
3/8 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup all purpose gluten free flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cooking oil
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons xanthan
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons yeast
potato starch as needed

Combine dry ingredients: brown rice flour, rice flour, cornstarch, all purpose gluten free flour, teaspoon salt, baking powder, xanthan.  In a small bowl mix warm water with the honey, stir to combine.  Sprinkle on yeast and set aside to become frothy. Mix wet ingredients- buttermilk, eggs, oil and then finally the yeast mixture.  Pour into dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Beat for about 4 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Sprinkle potato starch on surface place a handful of mixture onto potato starch.  Sprinkle potato starch over top and roll.  You have to use the potato starch pretty liberally.  You could try using parchment. Roll out a round, flat piece.  Transfer to hot skillet heat for about five minutes.  Flip to other side until just golden.  Remove from griddle and start again.

Kale Crust Pizza

For all of you people who might think this is one crazy recipe- its not- its amazing.  Yes, a lot of people are going kale crazy.  (Just so you know, I liked kale when kale wasn't cool.)  Now that kale is so cool, lots of kale recipes abound.  I saw this recipe and thought, that's kind of interesting but I highly doubt it's any good.  Maybe kinda good.  I like kale so I decided to give it a try.  OMG!

I really liked it.  My Mom, who is a bit skeptical about crazy recipes, liked it, my daughter liked it (see pic below), my husband liked it.  This recipe will definitely be made more than once in this house.  (Since I wrote this I have made it two more times.)

Try it.  You'll like it.  Really.

Kale Crust Pizza
These measurements are loose.  Meaning that you should make it as saucy, cheesey or garlicy as you like.  Its all up to you.  This is a rough guideline.

2 heads of kale (you should end up with 6 cups cooked kale)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup Peccorino Romano or Parmesan or Asiago
a hand full of basil
2 cups tomato sauce or pizza sauce
shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
3 tablespoons olive oil


Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sauté garlic in 3 tablespoons of olive oil until golden.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare Kale
Cook kale until it is tender.  Drain water from kale and cool.  Squeeze the kale in batches to get rid of excess water.

In a bowl whisk eggs and stir in kale, garlic with the olive oil and Asiago.

Arrange in a thin layer on the parchment.  You dont have to get fussy about the shape but you do have to make sure there is not scraggly ends.  These will burn as you bake it.

Place in a preheated 350F oven until the edges are brown.

Remove from oven, spread tomato sauce over top.  Sprinkle with basil chiffonade.  Sprinkle cheese over top.  Return to oven and bake for 10 to fifteen minutes more.

Gluten Free Pizza

No sense feeling left out when the rest of the family is enjoying pizza, make your own gluten free pizza.  Woot woot.

When I was away in Lancaster last month I ate at a pizza shop called, A Slice Of Brooklyn Pizzeria. I ordered the gluten free pizza and it was fantastic!  I figured if they could do it so could I sense Lancaster is a bit far to go for pizza.

This is a very good dough but it has to be done in a certain way- if you are making pizza for the gang - you need to be the last one served.  There is no getting around that if you want a warm slice of pizza.  Or you can be like me and just eat it a bit on the cold side.  You see a regular pizza takes about ten minutes in a hot oven.  This takes about 20 minutes.  It's a timing thing. So I had prebaked my shell and then made my families pizza.  Stuck mine in the oven to basically melt the cheese.

Hmm.  I just thought, maybe if I use my toaster oven while my family's pizza was in the oven.  Something to try for next time.

Look at those little pockets of air in there. 

Gluten Free Pizza
Largely adapted from Fool Proof Pizza at Allergy Free Alaska

1 cup sorghum flour
1 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
2 teaspoons xanthan gum
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 egg (room temperature)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 
1 tablespoon honey
3/4 cup hot water (between 105 – 115 degrees F)
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast  

In a measuring cup mix the honey with the warm water and sprinkle yeast over top.  Set aside.

In a large bowl or mixer combine all the dry ingredients- the flours, the salt, the baking powder and tapioca starch.  When the yeast mixture is foamy add it to the flours with the oil cider vinegar and egg.  Let the mixer run for four minutes.  If you are mixing in a bowl- mix with a whisk until your hands fall off.  Well, okay maybe not that long but you need to whisk to incorporate air- this is going to help your pizza have some lift.  So you need to whisk for at least five minutes. If you are a pro at it shoot for 7 minutes.

On a baking sheet, spread out a piece of parchment.  Smooth dough onto two different sheets of parchment paper.  Let rise for about 40 minutes.  Bake the pizza at 425F for about 10 minutes.

Turkey Mole Pizza

You know with lots of mole in my house, I just can't help but go crazy putting it on everything. 

My husband loves pizza- he is a total pizza conisseur.  He is of the NYC style pizza camp.  Me- I don't care- I like it but I am not totally in love with it.  When I made this pizza- he says, "what? you put mole on the pizza?" (how incredulous, how absurd!).

Yup, you guessed it, he loved it. It was one of the best tasting pizzas ever. How can it not be with a thing like mole? Although, some thinly sliced garden tomatoes really would have upped the ante.

Turkey Mole Pizza
Of course the measurements are totally up to your discretion.  Chicken would work beautifully here as well.  Turkey is what I had on hand.

1 cup shredded cooked turkey
1/2 cup mole
1/4 cup chiles
1 cup shredded mozarella
pizza dough

Form pizza round and slather the mole over top.  Sprinkly turkey all around and mozzarella over top.  Finally, spoon chiles around pizza. Bake at 475 F for about 15 minutes.